Transcoder API pricing

Pricing details for the Transcoder API, in USD.

If you pay in a currency other than USD, the prices listed in your currency on Cloud Platform SKUs apply.

Pricing overview

When you use the Transcoder API you are charged per minute of transcoded video output. Price per minute is based on the output video resolution.

Pricing table

Video class Resolution classifier Price per minute
SD Less than 1280x720 $0.015
HD 1280x720 to 1920x1080 $0.030
UHD More than 1920x1080 to 4096x2160 $0.060

Audio-only output: $0.005 per minute

If you pay in a currency other than USD, the prices listed in your currency on Cloud Platform SKUs apply.

Pricing examples

The following examples illustrate how Transcoder API pricing is calculated.

Example 1: Multiple output formats

Suppose a request is made to the Transcoder API with a 30-minute long input video file with four requested output resolutions:

  • 640x480
  • 1280x720
  • 1920x1080
  • 3840x2160

The price per output is determined by the video class of the requested video resolution. For the above example, the following video classes and price points are assigned.

Video resolution Resolution classifier Price per minute
640x480 SD $0.015
1280x720 HD $0.030
1920x1080 HD $0.030
3840x2160 UHD $0.060
Total Price Per Minute $0.135

The input video length is then multiplied by the calculated total price per minute for all requested video outputs to arrive at the total cost for the requested transcoding job.

  • 30 minutes * $0.135 per minute = $4.05 billed for transcoding job.

Example 2: Trimmed video

Supposed the same video resolutions are requested as in Example 1, but the 30-minute input is trimmed during transcoding to create a 2-minute output.

Pricing is per minute of output, so only 2 minutes are billed. The video resolutions are the same as Example 1, so the per-minute pricing is the same:

  • 2 minutes * $0.135 per minute = $0.27 billed for transcoding job.

Example 3: Multiple manifests

Suppose that two output manifests (one HLS, one DASH) are created, each including the same video resolutions as in Example 1.

Price per minute is calculated for each video stream encoded. In this case, since HLS and DASH manifests are repackaging the same four streams, the price per minute includes the cost of those four streams.

Video resolution Resolution classifier Price per minute
640x480 SD $0.015
1280x720 HD $0.030
1920x1080 HD $0.030
3840x2160 UHD $0.060
Total Price Per Minute $0.135
  • 30 minutes * $0.135 per minute = $4.05 billed for transcoding job.

Example 4: Audio-only output

Suppose a request is made to the Transcoder API with a 30-minute long input audio file for a 30-minute long output audio file.

  • 30 minutes * $0.005 per minute = $0.15 billed for transcoding job.

Example 5: Audio-only transcoding with trimmed audio output

This example uses a similar request to Example 4, but the 30-minute input is trimmed during transcoding to create a 2-minute output.

  • 2 minutes * $0.005 per minute = $0.01 billed for transcoding job.

Example 6: Video transcoding with multiple manifests

Suppose a request is made to the Transcoder API with a 30-minute long input video file with SD output resolution. Multiple manifests are produced (manifest1 (video1 + audio1) + manifest2 (audio1)).

In this case, the audio stream is generated from the video input and counts as complimentary for video transcoding. If the job has any video elementary stream, the charge is based only on the video class.

The price per output is determined by the video class of the requested video resolution.

  • 30 minutes * $0.15 per minute = $4.5 billed for transcoding job.

Example 7: Multiple audio-only transcoding

Suppose a request is made to the Transcoder API with a 30-minute long input audio file with two 30-minute output audio files.

  • 30 minutes * $0.005 per minute * 2 = $0.3 billed for a transcoding job.

What's next

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